Health
NMA Accuses JOHESU Leadership of ‘Emotional Blackmail’
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has described the leadership of the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) as delusional in its attempt to negotiate a better deal with the Federal Government for its members.
The NMA recalled that the JOHESU, in a publication, stated that if the NMA is involved in its negotiations with the Federal Government, it will discontinue the process.
The doctors’ association stated that physicians have had to make sacrifices in the health sector to ensure that all other allied health professionals were comfortable.
It stressed that in an attempt to placate JOHESU, physicians had to bend backwards by recommending relativity in emoluments below what is obtainable for physicians internationally to the disenchantment of members of the NMA.
It added that the JOHESU leadership deliberately spreads wrong information to its members and the public in a bid to emotionally blackmail the Director of Hospital Services (DHS) of the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) on welfare issues affecting its members.
The National Publicity Secretary of the NMA, Dr. Aniekeme Uwah, made this known in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja.
“It is worthy to note that doctors in administrative positions have worked hard to create a healthy balance in welfarism between physicians and allied health professionals in the health sector.
“Also known for an insatiable appetite for spreading misinformation and disinformation, it is no surprise, therefore, that JOHESU threw caution to the winds once more by attempting to emotionally blackmail the Director of Hospital Services (DHS) of the FMOH on welfare issues affecting her members.
“This is a well known strategy of JOHESU after failing in discussions oiled in hard evidence.
“Therefore, there is no basis for JOHESU to ask for the same salary as for Medical Doctors as this is not the standard practice worldwide.
“JOHESU knows that there is a relativity agreement between the Federal Government and the NMA on CONHESS and CONMESS.
“If the office of the DHS, FMOH drew the attention of the FG to the extant agreement on call duty allowance as signed in 2001 and basic salary as corrected and signed in 2014, she is only stating the obvious facts and should be commended for her due diligence.
“The Federal Government, the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment (FMOLE) know the implications of breaching the agreement on relativity.
“As a reminder, the NMA is not opposed to any salary increase, adjustment or variation for JOHESU and her members provided that such action and identical values are applied to CONMESS to sustain the agreement with NMA.
“Unknown to many innocent and hard working JOHESU members, the leadership of JOHESU has increasingly become ‘physicianphobic’ which is a form of dysociopath,” he said.
He added: “If anyone is to be unhappy, it should be the Physicians who are being short changed by the deliberate refusal of the Federal Government to apply internationally accepted relativity in the remuneration of health workers in Nigeria. JOHESU is free to negotiate with anybody. Physicians are not afraid of this provided that the facts and international standard are presented and applied.
“By making insinuation not to enter into negotiation with the Federal Government if doctors were involved, implies that such decisions would be extended to the Honourable Ministers of Health and that of Labour and Employment because they are Physicians.
“JOHESU should also stop meeting with the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Permanent Secretaries that are Physicians, Chief Medical Directors, Chairmen of Senate and House Committees on Health, Governors and Deputy Governors etc.
“JOHESU has forgotten that the DHS and other Physicians involved in their negotiation were there by virtue of the critical relevance of their offices and ot in individual capacities as Physicians.
“If we copy and travel this discriminatory road, then NMA will not negotiate with the Federal Government.
“Lastly, we wish to remind JOHESU that her members are primarily the staff of the Department of Hospital Services of the FMOH.
“The input of the DHS cannot be wished away because she is key to any negotiation on welfare matters in the health sector.”
Hundreds of millions of children and adolescents around the world face daily violence in their homes, schools, and elsewhere which could have lifelong consequences.The World Health Organisation (WHO) said this on Thursday.The violence includes being hit by family members, being bullied at school, as well as physical, emotional, and sexual violence, WHO said.
In most cases, violence occurs behind closed doors. More than half of those aged two to 17 or more than a billion minors in total experience violence each year according to the WHO. In three out of five children and adolescents, it is physical violence at home, with one in five girls and one in seven boys experiencing sexual violence.Between a quarter and half of minors are affected by bullying according to the information provided.Only half of the children reportedly talk about their experiences of violence and less than 10 per cent receive help.Lifelong consequences could include depression and anxiety disorders, or tobacco and drug use.As a result, many children do not reach their learning potential in school.Against the backdrop of being highly preventable, violence remains a horrific day-to-day reality for millions of children around the world leaving scars that span generations,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director general.The UN’s first conference on violence against children opened in Bogota, Columbia on Thursday.At the two-day conference, more than 100 countries pledged to find ways to better support overwhelmed parents and introduce school programmes against bullying and for healthy social behaviour.They also pledged to raise the minimum age for marriage.Some countries wish to generally ban children from being hit at school or home. (dpa/NAN)
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has listed 17 bacteria, viruses and parasites that regularly cause disease as top priorities for new vaccine development.WHO, in a study published on Tuesday, reconfirmed long-standing priorities for vaccine research and development (R&D), including for HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis – three diseases that collectively take nearly 2.
5 million lives yearly. The study is the first global effort to systematically prioritise endemic pathogens based on their regional and global health impact. Attention is also given to pathogens such as Group A streptococcus, which causes severe infections and contributes to 280,000 deaths from rheumatic heart disease, mainly in lower-income countries.Another new priority is Klebsiella pneumoniae — a bacteria that was associated with 790,000 deaths in 2019 and is responsible for 40 per cent of neonatal deaths due to blood infection (sepsis) in low-income countries.The new study supports the goal of ensuring that everyone, everywhere, can benefit from vaccines that protect against serious diseases.It aims to shift the focus in vaccine development away from commercial returns towards regional and global health needs, WHO’s Dr Mateusz Hasso-Agopsowicz, who works in vaccine research, said in a statement.He explained that in the past, vaccine R&D typically was influenced by profitability.“As a result, diseases that severely affect low-income regions received little attention.“We hope this represents a critical shift where we want to change the focus from commercial perspective profitability of new vaccines towards the actual health burden so that the new vaccine research and development is driven by health burden and not just commercial opportunities,” he said.To carry out the study, WHO asked international and regional experts what they think is important when prioritising pathogens for vaccines R&D.Criteria included deaths, disease and socioeconomic impact, or antimicrobial resistance.“We had asked experts that have expertise in pathogen epidemiology, clinicians, paediatricians, vaccine experts from all of the WHO regions, to ensure that the list and the results that we produce really reflect the needs of diverse populations worldwide,” Hasso-Agopsowicz said.Analysis of those preferences, combined with regional data for each pathogen, resulted in the top 10 priority pathogens for each of WHO’s six regions globally.The regional lists were then consolidated to form the global list, resulting in the 17 priority endemic pathogens for which new vaccines are urgently needed.To advance vaccine R&D, WHO has categorised each pathogen based on the stage of vaccine development and the technical challenges involved in creating effective vaccines.Hasso-Agopsowicz said the study is expected to guide future vaccine R&D investments, including funders, researchers and vaccine developers, and also policymakers as they “can decide whether to introduce these vaccines into immunisation programmes.” (NAN)
The Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan,has suspended the strike it embarked on Oct. 25.The workers resumed work on Friday morning.The seven-day nationwide warning industrial action embarked upon by the unions was to press home their demands ofadjustment of Consolidated Health Salary Structure as was done with the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure sinceJan.
2, 2014 and implementation of consultant cadre for pharmacists in federal health institutions. Others are upward review in the retirement age from 60 to 65 years for health workers and 70 years for consultants, andpayment of outstanding salaries of JOHESU members in professional regulatory councils.The UCH JOHESU Chairman, Mr Oladayo Olabampe, said that the strike was suspended as directed by the national body.He explained that “the suspension followed an MoU signed between JOHESU national leadership and Federal Government.“The Federal Government asked for a maximum of six weeks counting from Oct. 31, to meet our demands.“Based on the MoU signed, the JOHESU National Executive Council met and resolved that the strike be suspended on Fridaynationwide.”According to him, JOHESU UCH is obeying the order, and workers have resumed work.Olabampe said that if the demands were not met after the six weeks, they would embark on an indefinite strike. (NAN)
Masters Energy Group, Detractors and the Nigerian Economy
ShareBy Tony Iji Dr. Sampson Uche Ogah, president/founder of Masters Energy Group, is one of Nigeria’s leading, patriotic, visionary, and...
Let’s Fix PDP to Fix Nigeria, Says Makinde
ShareBy Johnson Eyiangho, Abuja The Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde has called on members of the Peoples Democratic Party...
Otu Mourns Lagbaja’s, Describes Late COAS as Courageous Soldier
ShareFrom Ene Asuquo, Calabar Cross River State Governor, Senator Bassey Edet Otu has expressed profound sadness over the sudden death...
Tinubu Tasks Media to Hold Leaders Accountable
ShareFrom Mike Tayese, Yenagoa President Bola Tinubu on Thursday said the Media has a duty to hold the elected and...
Youth Advocate Urges LG Chairman to Key into Kogi Gov’s Devt Agenda
ShareFrom Joseph Amedu, Lokoja A Youth Advocate on grassroots advancement, Andrew Ochika has urged the newly elected chairman of Dekina...
FCTA to Dualize Kuje-Gwagwalada Road
ShareBy Laide Akinboade, Abuja The Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike on Thursday revealed that President Bola Tinubu...
Insecurity: Nigeria Police Force Constables to Bear Arms
ShareFrom Dan Amasingha, Minna In its concerted effort at combating insecurity, the Nigeria Police Force has now authorized that all...
New Terrorists Group Emerges in Sokoto, Others – DHQ
ShareBy David Torough, Abuja The Defence Headquarters has confirmed the emergence of a new terrorist group known as ‘Lukarawas’ in...
Gen. Babangida Commiserates with Nigerians over Lagbaja
ShareFrom Dan Amasingha, Minna Former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida has commiserated with the President and Commander in Chief...
NESG, Tourism Stakeholders Meet to Validate Draft National Tourism Policy
ShareBy Tony Obiechina, Abuja Key stakeholders from Nigeria’s tourism, hospitality, and cultural sectors convened in Lagos for a pivotal validation...